Question

Consider the following quote: "And then I thought how I could never be an astronaut because being an astronaut meant being hundreds of thousands of miles away from home, and my home was in London now and that was about 100 miles away, which was more than 1,000 times nearer than my home would be if I was in space, and thinking about this made me hurt. Like when I fell over in the grass at the edge of a playground once and I cut my knee on a piece of broken bottle that someone had thrown over the wall and I sliced a flap of skin off and Mr. Davis had to clean the flesh under the flap with disinfectant to get the germs and the dirt out and it hurt so much I cried. But this hurt was inside my head. And it made me sad to think that I could never become an astronaut."
What is the effect of Haddon's sentence structure in this paragraph? [include evidence]

Answer 1

In this excerpt from Mark Haddon’s book "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time," the sentence structure creates a stream-of-consciousness effect that mirrors the protagonist's thought process. The long, complex sentences with numerous clauses reflect the character's spiraling thoughts and emotional state, emphasizing the connection between his feelings of longing and the reality of being far from home.

For example, the phrases "being an astronaut meant being hundreds of thousands of miles away from home" and "my home was in London now and that was about 100 miles away" are descriptive and layered, demonstrating the protagonist's analytical mind as he relates immense distances to his emotional experience of home. The use of comparative phrases, "which was more than 1,000 times nearer than my home would be if I was in space," further illustrates his attempt to quantify and understand his feelings, creating a sense of overwhelming distance and isolation.

The abrupt shift to a personal anecdote about cutting his knee serves to heighten the emotional stakes. The description of physical pain ("I sliced a flap of skin off... it hurt so much I cried") juxtaposes the internal, emotional hurt he feels about never becoming an astronaut. This blend of physical and emotional pain through a continuous flow of thought emphasizes his vulnerability. The concluding statement, "But this hurt was inside my head. And it made me sad to think that I could never become an astronaut," brings the reader back to the protagonist’s internal struggle, reinforcing the theme of unfulfilled dreams and the deep sense of longing tied to physical distance.

Overall, the sentence structure enhances the emotional depth and complexity of the protagonist's experience, revealing how intertwined his aspirations and feelings of home are. It captures a moment of profound realization and sadness, making the reader empathize with the character's situation.